Track tamping method



June 10, 1969 F'YPLASSER ETAL 3,448,692

TRACK TAMPING METHOD Original Filed March 22, 1966 Sheet 2 of 2 i T i i 1 i 1 I II I II I I I I I I MN I M: 7 2 2 3 3 I f I L 11].?{5 AA AA /'1\/"\ 1'\ A 1 A e, B A; (7B 0, B 0 D x a i L I Ill-j- AA AA f'\/"\ 1' A A A A I M2 l 2 3D/C2B3:/ 2 3 2 3 3 I i I I E I W: A T AA A A A A A A /1\ AA A A A M2 7 2 3 1 2 3 2 35 2 1 E 3 Vi A AA A A A AAA A L'AAA A A INVENTORS.

(J KM Age i United States Patent 3,448,692 TRACK TAMPING METHOD Franz Plasser and Josef Theurer, both of Johannesgasse 3, Vienna, Austria Continuation of application Ser. No. 536,380, Mar. 22, 1966, which is a continuation-in-part of applications Ser. No. 495,123, Oct. 12, 1966, and Ser. No. 497,288, Oct. 18, 1965. This application Oct. 23, 1967, Ser. No. 678,158

Claims priority, application Austria, Nov. 30, 1964,

A 10,076/64, A 10,077/64; Jan. 27, 1965, A 718/65 Int. Cl. E01b 27/16 US. Cl. 104-12 5 Claim;

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A track is tamped in a regular Succession of repeating tamping operations as the track tamper advances along the track. A group of at least two ties is tamped in each of the operations, each of which is identical with the preceding one.

This is a continuation of our copending application Ser. No. 536,380, filed Mar. 22, 1966, now abandoned, and a continuation-in-part of applications Ser. No. 495,- 123, filed Oct. 12, 1966, now Patent No. 3,380,395, and Ser. No. 497,288, filed Oct. 18, 1965, now abandoned.

The present invention relates to railroad track maintenance, and more particularly to improvements in ballast tamping.

Mobile track tampeis with or without means for aligning and/or grading the track are known. In our application Ser. No. 441,229, filed Mar. 19, 1965 now Patent No. 3,372,651, we have disclosed a machine of this type with a plurality of tamping tool assemblies. Such tamping tool assemblies may be individually movably mounted on the machine so that their position may be adjusted in the direction of the track elongation and in respect of the track ties to be tamped. Preferably, as disclosed in our application Ser. No. 495,123, the tamping tool assemblies are mounted for movement on the tamper in the direction of elongation of the track, and means is provided for coupling the assemblies in agroup of at least two assemblies for simultaneous movement of the group of assemblies in said direction. Also, as disclosed in our application Ser. No. 497,288, means for laterally aligning the track are preferably mounted intermediate the front and rear axles of the mobile machine.

The term tamping tool assembly designates ballast tamping means designed to tamp the ballast underneath a tie. In the well known assembly illustrated herein by way of example, each tamping tool assembly includes a pair of tools spaced from each other in the direction of elongation of the track, and opposing tools of each pair being arranged for immersion in the ballast adjacent a selected tie and for reciprocation in the direction of the track elongation, such as disclosed, for instance, in our US. Patents Nos. 2,876,709 and 2,915,018.

It is the principal object of this inveniton to improve the efficiency of track tamping.

This object is accomplished by tamping track ties along a track section in a succession of like tamping operations, wherein each operation includes the simultaneous tamping of a group of at least two ties.

In one specific embodiment, each group includes two ties, a first one of the groups of ties encloses two ties that have not been previously tamped, a first one of the untamped ties is skipped in a subsequent tamping operation, and a second one of the untamped ties is tamped as a tie of the group in the subsequent tamping operation. One tie is skipped between all successive tamping operations.

In another specific embodiment, each group includes, in the direction of advance of the succession of tamping operations, a hindmost tie, an intermediate tie and a foremast tie. The hindmost and intermediate ties of a first group of ties encloses a first set of previously untamped ties, and the intermediate and foremost ties of the first group enclose a second set of previously untamped ties. The two hindmost untamped ties in the first set are skipped in a subsequent tamping operation, and the foremost untamped tie in the first set is tamped as a tie of the group in the subsequent operation. Two ties are skipped between all successive tamping operations.

Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of certain preferred embodiments thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 schematically shows one embodiment of the tamping method of this invention; and

FIG. 2 similarly illustrates another embodiment thereof.

Since track tampers useful in the method of the present invention are generally well known and specific tampers useful in carrying out this method have been particularly disclosed and claimed in our above-identified copending applications, and since the present invention is not concerned with any specific apparatus, a useful mobile tamper for carrying out one embodiment of this invention has been merely schematically shown in FIG. 1, to include a machine frame 1 supported on front and rear axles 2 and 3 for movement on a track consisting of rails 4 resting on ties 5, the direction of advance of the mobile track tamper during the tamping being indicated by an arrow. The machine frame carries two tamping tool assemblies 6 and 7'. Since not directly pertinent to the present invention,-neither the operating or moving means, if any, for the tamping tool assemblies nor the track aligning and/or grading means conventionally mounted on the machine frame are shown.

In the method of FIG. 1, each tamping operation in cludes the simultaneous tamping of two ties, and seven successive like tamping operations are shown. The first group of ties A and A encloses two ties that have not been previously tamped. After the first tamping operation is completed, the tamper is advanced in the direction of the arrow along the track section suificiently to skip a first one of the untamped ties. With the tamping tool assembly 6' aligned with the second one of the untamped ties, the group of ties B and B is tamped in the subsequent like tamping operation. Next, one tie is skipped again to tamp the group of ties C and C this being successively continued with a like skipping of one tie and tamping of successive groups D -D I'l -E F F and G G (not shown) in the illustrated manner. Thus, in each of the successive tamping operations, one of the untamped ties between two previously tamped ties is tamped, adjacent ties being tamped one after the other as the tamper advanced along the track, all ties between ties B and F having been tamped at the end of a succession of like tampering operations. As is obvious from the drawing, the distance between the two tamping tool assemblies 6', 7' remains unchanged in the successive tamping operations.

More than the two tamping tool assemblies may be mounted on the machine frame, the number of assemblies being limited only by the acceptable length of the machine frame. FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment wherein three tamping tool assemblies 6, 7 and 8 are mounted on the machine frame 1 for tamping in groups of three ties. Again, seven successive like tamping operations are shown, a hindmost, an intermediate and a foremost tie, in the direction of advance of the tamper, being simultaneously tamped in each successive operation. As shown on top of FIG. 2, the hindmost and intermediate ties of the first group encloses a first set of previously untamped ties, and the intermediate and foremost ties of the first group encloses a second set of previously untamped ti s- In the subsequent tamping operation I, the two hindmost untamped ties in the first set adjacent the tamped tie A are skipped, and the foremost untamped tie B in the first set adjacent tamped tie A is tamped as a tie of the group including ties B and B In the next successive operation II, two ties are skipped again to tamp the group of ties C C C the same procedure being repeated in successive operations III, IV, V and VI to tamp the groups of ties D1D2D3, E1-E2-E3, F1F2F3 and G G G (the latter tie not being shown.) After the tamping operation following operation VI (not shown), all ties between tie C and F will have been tamped.

It will be obvious from the above description of specific embodiments and variations of the tamping method of the present invention that its essential feature is the successive tamping of groups of n ties in like tamping operations along a track section to be aligned and/or graded. In such operations, as is well known, the position of the track section is first corrected, the corrected track section is held in the corrected position and, while so held, the ties in the corrected track section are tamped to fix the track section in the corrected position.

Each pair of a group of ties being tamped simultaneously encloses two or more ties which are tamped in subsequent groups while the tamper advances along the track section, skipping one or more ties from one operation to the other, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. This makes a continuous operation possible without changing the spacing of the tamping tool assemblies in relation to each other (unless the spacing of the ties varies). Therefore, the tamping tool assemblies may be immersed into the ballast promptly at each intermittent stop of the tamper to start tamping without any loss of time.

While the invention has been described in connection with certain specific embodiments, it will be clearly understood that many variations and modifications may occur to those skilled in the art, particularly after benefiting from the present teaching, without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

What we claim is:

1. A method of tamping ties along a track section with a mobile track tamper carrying a number n of tamping tool assemblies spaced in the direction of elongation of the track section in alignment with a group of n ties, comprising the steps of (a) simultaneously tamping a group of n ties in a tamping operation, salid group of n ties enclosing an equal number previously tamped and of untamped ties;

(b) subsequently advancing the track tamper by successive distances of n ties until the tamping tool assemblies are in successive alignment with successive groups of n ties; and

(c) simultaneously tamping each successive group of n ties in successive tamping operations.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein n=2.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein a first one of said enclosed ties is skipped in each succeeding tamping operation while a second one of said enclose ties is the one tie tamped in each preceding tamping operation.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein n=3.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said groups of three ties include, in the direction of advance of said track tamper, a hindmost tie, an intermediate tie and a foremost tie, the hindmost and intermediate ties of the group tamped during each successive tamping operation enclosing one previously untamped tie and two previously tamped ties, and the intermediate and the foremost ties of said group enclosing two previously untamped ties and one previously tamped tie.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,497,682 2/1950 'Mertz 10412 FOREIGN PATENTS 793,377 4/ 1958 Great Britain. 374,095 4/ 1964 Switzerland. 374,379 2/ 1964 Switzerland.

ARTHUR L. LA POINT, Primary Examiner.

R. A. BERTSCH, Assistant Examiner. 

